We’ve commented before on the caustic treatment that Scientology true believer Tom Cruise has received from media outlets. The Los Angeles Times, which has been reporting on Scientology for decades, ran a lengthy business pages look inside the Church of Scientology’s Gilman Hot Springs resort on Sunday. The package included 30 photos of the compound and focused on business and spiritual relationship of Tom Cruise and current church head David Miscavige, although the article also provides a bit of information about the religious beliefs of Scientologists:
Sacred spaces? Let Dallas be Dallas
Anyone who knows anything about church growth in America knows that, when it comes to studying big churches, all roads lead to Texas (surprise, surprise) and sooner or later (surprise, surprise) you’re going to end up in Dallas, which some people call the capital of American evangelicalism. If you doubt me, click here.
Check out the Liberty (hoops) women
This story from the Baltimore Sun has been hanging around in my imagination for several days. Let’s just say that I find it hard to ignore a story that starts with this lead:
Sheep safely graze
A priest and six laymen at a Roman Catholic church in St. Louis have been excommunicated by Archbishop Raymond Burke and St. Louis Post-Dispatch religion writer Tim Townsend has been doing excellent coverage, even winning an award for one of his earlier stories.
A move towards a Mormon president
Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney didn’t exactly announce that he was running for president last week, but he certainly made as forward a move as any major candidate so far. What’s interesting about this announcement is that it’s before the 2006 elections.
Blessed be the ties that bind
OK, it’s just a little cute Associated Press story about the Alpha Male rock star hanging out with the once powerful arch-conservative U.S. senator.
A few "elite" words from the editor
This is the rare case where I want to pull a piece of a comment thread out front, since it deals with the actual purpose — the roots — of this blog.
Scientists with clay feet
Embryonic stem cell research pioneer Hwang Woo-suk had a really bad day yesterday. Dr. Hwang is the cloning superstar who was riding the express train to the Nobel Prize until a few weeks ago. He received Time magazine’s invention of the year award for his cloned puppy and earlier this month he won Scientific American‘s researcher of the year award.
The hearts of peaceniks and terrorists
What to say about the shocking lack of coverage of the kidnapping of the four members from the Christian Peacemakers Teams? It’s shaping up to be a deeply compelling story that carries serious ironies that are just begging to be explored. Mollie here at GetReligion first tackled this subject on Saturday and little has been written in the mainstream press since then
